This invention is an improvement over prior and existing large foldable hay rakes such as that shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,899,055.
Existing foldable hay rakes typically have a pair of wheel supported elongated rake arms that are pivotal along their lengths, and capable of being pivoted individually with respect to each other. While substantially advancing the art of hay raking, these devices have certain shortcomings. Among them are that the rakes are cumbersome to use both in operation and for travel; they require substantial room for turning and maneuvering; they do not adapt well to uneven ground; they are susceptible to damage in the field, and they do not always cover the field well to deal with all the hay that is being raked.
Further, existing foldable hay rakes typically have an actuating rod or lift tube that runs alongside and is supported by the rake arms. Individual raking wheels are mounted to the rake arms and are connected to the lift tube such that when the lift tube is translationally shifted relative to the rake arms, the raking wheels are either lifted or lowered. Specifically, existing foldable hay rakes utilize a hydraulic cylinder mounted to the end of the rake arm extension and connected to the lift tube. When the cylinder rod is retracted, the raking wheels are engaged with the ground surface. The cylinder rod extends to effectively push the lift tube from the rearward end of the lift tube and raise the individual raking wheels from the ground surface. The problem with existing foldable hay rakes is that pushing from the rearward end of the lift tube to raise the individual raking wheels often bends or damages the lift tube.
Also, with larger diameter rake wheels exceeding 60 inches in outside diameter, the teeth are spaced greater than four inches apart which causes problems raking fine hay and leads to a loss in yield.
Another problem with existing foldable hay rakes is that they leave a path in the center of the raking machine where hay is turned in for bailing that remains unraked. This unraked portion that lies underneath the turned in portion is more difficult to pick up during harvesting or baling leading to lost yields and reduced growth in future harvests.
It is therefore a principal object of this invention to provide a foldable hay rake that will overcome the foregoing problems, and which will enhance the performance and efficiency of raking hay.
Another object of this invention is to provide a foldable hay rake that can be easily observed from the towing tractor while in operation, and which can individually rake and turn separate rows of cut hay, or to combine such rows into a single row for baling.
A further object of this invention is to provide a foldable hay rake with a center kicker wheel assembly.
A still further object of this invention is to provide an axle dampener for dampening the wobbling of a castor wheel
Another object of this invention is to provide a hay rake wheel with improved physical characteristics for efficiently raking hay.
These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.